Matthew 10:39 - Living For Jesus Or Self?

He that findeth his life shall lose it:
and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
Mat 10:39 (KJV)

Those who try to hold on to their lives will give up true life.
Those who give up their lives for me will hold on to true life.
Mat 10:39 (NCV)

The pith of such paradoxical maxims depends on the double sense
attached to the word "life"-a lower and a higher, the natural and the
spiritual, the temporal and eternal. An entire sacrifice of the lower, with
all its relationships and interest is indispensable to the
preservation of the higher life; and he who cannot bring himself to surrender
the one for the sake of the other shall eventually lose both.
[Jamieson, Fausset, And Brown Commentary]

Here the word life means the natural life as opposed to the
spiritual life.  That is, to pursue one's natural well-being at the
expense of the spiritual, or eternal, is a fatal mistake. [Annotated SB
mod]

He that is anxious to save his "temporal" life, or his comfort
and security here, shall lose "eternal" life, or shall fail of
heaven. He that is willing to risk or lose his comfort and "life" here
for my sake, shall find "life" everlasting, or shall be saved.
(Barnes' Notes)

Only in Christ is life to be found, real life, everlasting life;
to cling to the life of this world, the doomed and forfeited life
of man dead in his sins, means losing the only real life there is.
[Concordia SB]

The disciple must die to self-will; God's will must become his
will. He may have to give up his own, plans and ambitions, perhaps
even his life... He whose goal is merely to preserve his physical
life will lose all that makes life worthwhile. He who gives up his
own interests for Jesus will find a fulfilled life here and blessing
throughout eternity. [Passages Of Life SB]

Those who think to "find" life by living for the things this
world has to offer are laboring "for the meat which perisheth" [SDA
Commentary]

Wise are the words of the martyr Jim Elliot who said, "He is no
fool, who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose."
What is the Lord requiring of you?  Do you need to heed His words
from this passage?  For this man, there didn't seem to be a middle
ground, no compromise.  The Lord still permits no compromises today.
Anything more precious to you than God must be given away immediately. If
you will it, God will give you the strength to do it, and come into
a right relationship with Him! [In His Time; Walk With Wisdom]

The only way to gain our life (and get control of our life!) is
to submit ourself to God through Jesus Christ.  By living for
ourself, we have become slaves to material success, work, alcohol,
illicit sex, or any number of other destructive behaviors.  We have lost
control of our life and are in trouble.  By giving our life to Jesus, we
allow him to cleanse us of our addictions and show us the way to real
life - a life free of destructive dependencies.  And as we follow
God's will for us, we will begin to experience a meaningful life in
the present, while also finding eternal peace with God.  [Life
Recovery SB]

Each person has his own light to keep burning; and if the
heavenly oil is emptied into these lamps through the golden pipes; if the
vessels are emptied of self, and prepared to receive the holy oil, light
will be shed on the sinner's path to some purpose...... Each
consecrated vessel will daily have the holy oil emptied into it to be
emptied out into other vessels..... The capacity for receiving the holy
oil from the two olive trees is increased as the receiver empties
that holy oil out of himself in word and action to supply the
necessities of other souls. 6T116,7

Oil of Kindness
I recall reading some years ago in a newspaper article about an
old man who carried a small can of "3-In-One Oil" with him wherever
he went.  When he passed through a door that squeaked he squirted a
little oil on the hinges.  If a gate was hard to open, he oiled the
latch ... and thus he passed through life lubricating all the
squeaking places, making live more pleasant for those who came after him
... an unusual procedure, yet he derived a great deal of pleasure in
doing it.
We see others doing similar deeds like this by planting
flowers/shrubs along the roadway or picking up litter, planting trees in
unsightly places or like the good neighbor this Christmas who decorated a
tree along the rail road to enhance the area with a little beauty.
In our lives, there are many opportunities for us to perhaps
spread a little oil of kindness where it will make a big difference in
a small way.  There's no telling how many lives we may keep from
rusting and squeaking, how many gates to happiness we may oil that will
make a life a little easier.  Pastor Fate Thomas